I have a love/hate relationship with my hearing aids.  Mostly hate. 

Let me say at the outset that I do hear better with them.  But we got off to a rocky start.  One of my ear canals is mis-shaped (who knew?) and that required all kinds of adjustments – so I had to plan extra preparation time if I had an appointment because it took me so long to get the hearing aid in my ear correctly.  And sometimes I just gave up.

However, after three-plus years, I’ve finally got it down to a science.  Even though I can pretend I am wearing those white ear buds that adorn most ears out in the world, I still would prefer not to wear them.

And I’m not alone.  The father of one of my children’s friends absolutely refuses to wear his hearing aids, and his son has accepted the reality that he must shout to be understood.

That father might want to reconsider, according to a recent article in The Boston Globe that says that those who need hearing aids and don’t use them increase their risk of dementia.  See:  https://tinyurl.com/26vwne8a

The somewhat prohibitive costs are coming down with the availability of over-the-counter hearing aids.

Can you hear me?